FrontRunner collides with truck, derails; 8 hurt

NORTH SALT LAKE — A FrontRunner train collided with a Union Pacific maintenance truck Friday just after 1 p.m., causing injuries, a small fire and delays for commuters.

The collision occurred near the intersection of 300 East and Center Street, where the heavy duty truck was spraying weeds along the tracks. The truck was leaving the area, said Utah Transit Authority spokesman Remi Barron, when it was hit by the FrontRunner.

The collision caused several minor injuries to train passengers. Two passengers hospitalized as a precaution and six others were evaluated on scene, said Jeff Basset, chief of the South Davis Metro Fire Agency. They primarily reported pain and discomfort in their neck and back, he said.

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“The train just kind of chewed up the side of the truck,” Barron said.

The train was derailed in the crash and will not be in service again until about 8 p.m. Passengers on the damaged train were afforded a bus to get to their next stop. Others are also asked to use UTA buses provided at stations in Clearfield and Salt Lake to get around the Woods Cross stop, closest to the site of the collision.

“Please expect 20-30 min. delays,” UTA tweeted late Friday afternoon.

The southbound exit off of Interstate 15 near Center Street was closed until about 1:40 p.m. Center Street itself remains closed. Residents were asked to avoid the area in the early afternoon.

A small fire resulted from the crash but was quickly put out, Bassett said. Debris caught under the train after the collision caused friction with the tracks, he said, causing sparks that ignited a grass fire.

Contact reporter Ben Lockhart at 801-625-4221 or blockhart@standard.net. Follow him on Twitter at @SE_Lockhart. Like his Facebook page at www.facebook.com/blockhartSE.